Do Bilinguals Have an Advantage in Theory of Mind? A Meta-Analysis

Frontiers in Communication

Schroeder, Scott R.¹ 

[1] Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences, Hofstra University, United States

关键词: bilingualism;    Theory of Mind;    false belief;    executive functioning;    cognitive development;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fcomm.2018.00036

学科分类：计算机网络和通讯

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

Bilingualism might help children develop Theory of Mind, but the evidence is mixed. To address the disagreement in the literature, a meta-analysis was conducted on studies that compared bilingual and monolingual children on false belief and other Theory of Mind tests. The meta-analysis of 16 studies and 1,283 children revealed a small bilingual advantage (Cohen’s d=.22, p=.050). A secondary analysis was conducted on studies (k=8) that statistically adjusted the Theory of Mind scores to correct for a bilingual disadvantage in language proficiency. This secondary analysis indicated a medium-size bilingual advantage (Cohen’s d=.58, p<.001). There was no evidence for publication bias in either analysis. Taken together, the results provide support for a beneficial effect of acquiring two languages on mental state reasoning. Explanations for this bilingual advantage, which include bilingual-monolingual differences in executive functioning, metalinguistic awareness, and socio-pragmatic abilities, are discussed.

【 授权许可】

CC BY